


Capricorn

by ukenceto



Series: Love beyond the bones [29]
Category: Gears of War (Video Games)
Genre: Cows, Domestic, Fluff, M/M, One Shot, Pre-Relationship, Slice of Life
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-03-10
Updated: 2021-03-10
Packaged: 2021-03-16 14:48:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,508
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29951574
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/ukenceto/pseuds/ukenceto
Summary: Survival isn't just foraging and hunting and fighting your enemy.Sometimes, it's a lot more simple, and Paduk makes sure to teach Fahz that.
Relationships: Fahz Chutani/Garron Paduk
Series: Love beyond the bones [29]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1025247
Kudos: 3





	Capricorn

“You know, when you said you needed my help… That’s not exactly what came to mind.” Fahz looked at the animal with apprehension. The horns easily spanned wider than the outstretch of both of his arms, and in general, it was a pretty massive beast.

He still remembered the way the Condor’s ramp had creaked under the hooves of it and its brethren, making Fahz wonder if picking them up from Vasgar had been a good idea after all.

But Paduk had been unyielding, and well, he hadn’t wanted to come back and tell Baird the Nomads hadn’t come because he’d refused to bring in their livestock as well.

And so they’d maxed out the Condor’s capacity, bringing people and animals alike, which had yielded a rather… colorful trip.

So now the various chickens, stocky goats and the like resided in newly constructed sheds in the former gardens of Baird’s mansion. The Nomads had insisted on being close to their animals, and they had kept on caring for them quite seamlessly.

Hence his surprise at being faced with one now, casually standing on the grassy lawn, chewing thoroughly.

“Come, sit here.” Paduk patted the short wooden stool next to him.

He still had his left arm in a cast, his dislocated shoulder needing another week or two to heal fully.

“Um, is it absolutely necessary?” So far, Fahz had managed to keep a steady distance between himself and the… cow. He was pretty certain that’s what the animal was. His eyes kept returning to the horns.

“She won’t bite, just don’t approach her head on.” At that, Paduk patted the beast’s belly fondly, the silky white coat gleaming under his hand despite the overcast day. “It’s a valuable skill you should learn.”

That had Fahz intrigued alright.

He and Paduk definitely spoke on better terms now, after he’d helped him bring all the Nomads to New Ephyra safely. Yeah, there was still a tad of intimidation thrown in there too, but Fahz knew himself well. He respected the man, maybe not in the same way he did Marcus or Baird, but still.

The lot of them had seen more of life than he had, and had fought the war which ensured he’d been given a childhood of freedom and security.

Even though Paduk had been part of the UIR and done what he had done in Vasgar, he was a veteran and a fearless ally in battle, which had definitely made him rise up in Fahz’s eyes.

“Alright…” He sighed lightly, and carefully approached the cow, ready to dodge or roll at the first sign of hostility.

The animal remained somewhat indifferent, so he sat down next to Paduk, his knees almost reaching the cow’s belly. He noticed the metal bucket near the… udders? Surprisingly enough, something of the biology classes had remained in his head.

“There’s nothing like some cheese and bread after a hard day’s work.” Paduk pulled another bucket from the side, this one filled with water, and with some sort of a fine cloth resting on the edge. “Our animals have provided us with sustenance for many years. Have you ever wondered how?”

“Ah, not in great detail really.” Fahz did recall some school classes that were set around the botanical gardens of New Ephyra, but he hadn’t paid much attention at the time. He knew the city worked, and people grew or made most food within the walls, but the exact process had remained unclear. “Are you going to…”

Paduk was busy washing the udder with his good hand, using the water from the bucket.

“It has to be warm, but not hot.” He explained nonchalantly. “Use cold water, and you’ll startle her. That’ll earn you a kick.”

“I feel if that thing kicks me, it’ll tear me in half.” The cow’s hooves were easily the size of dinner plates. Wildlife on Sera had always been intimidatingly large, but the specific breed of cattle the Nomads had brought over, seemed to excel at that.

“She. Don’t be rude.” Paduk scoffed. “And yes. You don’t want to get on her bad side, that’s right.”

“So… What do I need to do.” All in all, Fahz never was one to back away from a challenge.

“Help me milk her.” Paduk said simply. “It has to be done morning and evening.”

Fahz felt a bit speechless at that. It definitely wasn’t how he’d thought his day would go.

“Okay…” He said, still a tad uncertain. However, he kept a close eye on Paduk’s motions, watching him squeeze one of the tubular ends of the cow’s udder. A couple of thin squirts of milk quickly fell to the ground.

“You have to do this, to make sure there’s nothing stuck inside, grass or dirt or so.” Paduk explained. “And watch her side, if she leans her weight back or forth, it means she’ll move.”

“And kick?” Fahz definitely felt a bit unnerved now.

“Maybe, but most of the time she is calm. This is why I picked her today, to teach you.” Paduk then placed the empty bucket underneath the udder.

“Does this hurt her?” He honestly hadn’t given much thought to the process before.

“Not if done correctly.” Paduk outstretched his hand, only glancing in Fahz’s direction for a moment. “You squeeze a bit, and pull down. Squeeze and pull. Start off lightly.”

With that, the first splashes of milk began gathering in the bucket. Paduk was rather quick at it, despite using just one hand.

“Think I got it.” Fahz said after watching for a while, occasionally looking up to the cow’s muzzle. She was now grazing from the batch of hay in front of her, her long ears twitching lightly.

“Eyes here.” Paduk reminded him. “Come on now, give it a try.”

“Alright, gently then…” Carefully reaching over, he tried his best to imitate the motions Paduk had just been doing. The udder felt soft and smooth under his hand, though without too much of a give. Still, he was rewarded with a quick splash of milk, so he continued, reminding himself to focus more on the cow as a whole.

She shifted just slightly, but Paduk had his hand on her again, petting down her side in what appeared to be a soothing manner.

“Some people sing to them.” He mentioned after a moment. “If you can sing, feel free to.”

“Does it calm them down?” Fahz huffed under his breath, realizing it will be some time until the bucket was full. This was proving to be a bit more challenging than what it had seemed from the side, and he realized it really must’ve been hard to do with one hand.

“Yeah, calms you as well.” Paduk explained. “They feel that too.”

“I’m not sure if I can sing right now, but I’ll keep it in mind for the future.” Fahz said, though he wasn’t entirely convinced of his singing capabilities. However, he recalled hearing JD sing in the shower, and hum to himself in the kitchen sometimes. Now he definitely had the voice for that. “Maybe sometime JD and Del could try it too. JD can sing.”

“Good, teach your friends as well. It is a skill just as important as learning to use your weapons.” Paduk sounded almost proud, which made heat rise in Fahz’s face.

It wasn’t often that someone responded this positively to his actions. Fahz liked to do things well.

“Thinking about it, they might know how to do it already.” He hummed out after a while. “JD lived with Marcus outside of the city, I guess Del did too.”

“Ah yes, the estate.” Paduk pulled the bucket slightly, and it was just in time as the cow moved forward a bit. “I went there quite some years ago. James was still a boy.”

“I’m surprised he hadn’t spoken of you before.” Fahz definitely hadn’t noticed that the cow was about to move, so he was glad the bucket wasn’t overturned to the ground now.

“He was little, and I think a lot of people passed by there at the time.” Paduk added.

“JD always made it sound like his dad was practically a hermit.” Fahz chuckled at that, since it was the last thing he’d have thought of the war hero Marcus Fenix. Even if he was his friend’s dad.

“Eh, that was later on. The world changed.” Paduk shrugged, though he tipped his chin at Fahz who got the hint and focused back on the cow.

“It does that a lot then, doesn’t it. The world.” He said a bit morosely. In an year, so many things had changed for him, that at times he was struggling to remember what life before those events was like. And it hadn’t even all started up with the Swarm.

“Yeah, it does.” Paduk patted the cow absentmindedly again, falling silent.

Between them, Fahz could only hear the cow eating, and the milk gathering in the bucket.

All in all, it wasn’t a bad way to start the day.


End file.
